Guernsey Soil & Water Conservation District

06/10/2026

W**D WATCH WEDNESDAY, where we shine a spotlight on w**ds commonly found across Guernsey County.

Poison Hemlock (Conium maculatum) — If you’ve taken a drive down most roads in Guernsey County recently, you may have noticed a tall white flower growing. Chances are, that is Poison Hemlock. This highly invasive w**d is a biennial herb in the carrot family. In its first year, it forms a low basal rosette; by the second year, it bolts into a tall flowering plant that can reach up to 10 feet in height.

Poison Hemlock has several easy identification features. It has a smooth, hollow, hairless stem with distinctive purple or reddish blotches. The small white blooms form an umbrella‑shaped umbel. When the leaves are crushed, the plant gives off an unpleasant musty smell.

Poison Hemlock is most commonly found along roadsides and in disturbed soils, but if you take a quick look around, you’ll notice it is making its way into hay and pasture fields. This w**d is considered highly invasive and can be found in every county in Ohio. The seeds are easily distributed by animals, wind, and equipment. Seeds remain viable in the soil for 3–6 years, and a single plant can produce thousands of seeds—so early intervention is key to stopping the spread.

Why is Poison Hemlock so concerning? It poses a severe toxicity threat and a public health hazard to both humans and animals. If ingested, this plant is poisonous, and immediate medical care is required. There have been multiple cases where it has been mistakenly consumed due to its resemblance to edible plants such as wild carrot, parsley, and wild parsnip. Because of its toxicity and the risk of contact dermatitis, it is advisable to always wear proper PPE when handling Poison Hemlock.

Fun Fact: In ancient Greece, hemlock was used to poison condemned prisoners—Socrates being the most famous example.

For more information on Poison Hemlock or help identifying it on your property, please reach out to Guernsey Soil and Water for assistance.

Stay tuned for next week’s W**d Watch Wednesday, because every plant has a story—even the pesky ones!

06/03/2026

Don’t miss your chance to sign up for Conservation Day Camp! Spots are filling up!

Sign up deadline is Wednesday, July 1st!

We would also like to note that for the little caterpillars camp for ages 4-6 on Saturday July 11th that a parent or guardian must be present with the child for the entirety of the day.

See you soon! 🐛🪲🦉🦋🐍

Conservation Day Camp sign ups are here for 2026!

We’ve switched it up this year and will have 2 different age groups each with their own full day of camp activities tailored to their age group! See the flyer below for more information!

Cost is $15 per child

06/03/2026

W**D WATCH WEDNESDAY, where we shine a spotlight on w**ds commonly found across Guernsey County

Smooth Bedstraw ( Galium mollugo)- If you’ve noticed a white wispy plant taking over hayfields and pastures in Guernsey county you are probably looking at Smooth Bedstraw. This persistent perennial w**d comes back every year and is one of more than 30 bedstraw species found across North America. Smooth bedstraw has a smooth or nearly smooth square stem with small whorled leaves. When it blooms this w**d resembles baby’s breath with its small white flowers, which can be pretty from a distance but no so charming when it begins crowding out your forage.

Smooth Bedstraw is an opportunistic w**d that thrives in poor or nutrient- deficient soils, which is why it often shows up in thin hayfields or overgrazed pastures. Livestock tend to avoid it because of its poor palatability and bitter taste, allowing it to spread even more aggressively.

Smooth Bedstraw can spread two ways: seeds that scatter easily and rhizomes creeping underground, forming dense patches.

Fun fact: The genus name 'Galium' is from the Greek word meaning milk, and refers to the ancient use of bedstraw plants to curdle milk in the process of making cheese.

Stay tuned for next weeks W**d Watch Wednesday, because every plant has a story, even the pesky ones.

06/01/2026

As we head into the summer growing season, we're excited to launch a brand-new weekly segment, W**d Watch Wednesday, where we shine a spotlight on w**ds commonly found across Guernsey County. Each week, we will break down what the plant is, where it thrives, why it matters, and what it can tell us about the health of your fields, pastures, or backyards. Our goal is to keep things simple, practical, and helpful, whether you're a producer, gardener, or just someone who enjoys learning more about the things around you. We'll kick things off with some of the most recognizable w**ds in our area and then work our way into the sneaky ones that often go unnoticed until they've made themselves at home. If there's a w**d you'd like to see featured, feel free to send us a message or an email at [email protected]. We're looking forward to a summer full of learning, local insight, and a few "ah-ha!" moments along the way! Stay tuned for our first W**d Watch Wednesday post coming soon, because every plant has a story, even the pesky ones.

05/19/2026

Conservation Day Camp sign ups are here for 2026!

We’ve switched it up this year and will have 2 different age groups each with their own full day of camp activities tailored to their age group! See the flyer below for more information!

Cost is $15 per child

05/14/2026

It's that time of year again, Guernsey County Crop Producers 🌽. MWCD Cover Crop Enrollment runs from May 15th to July 1st, with a cost-share of $12 per acre.

What you'll need:

🧪a soil test from within the last 3 years

🗺 tract maps of enrolled fields

Are your soil tests out of date? We're offering 2 free soil tests per producer through our Soil Nutrient Assessment Program.

Reach out to our office today to start your application. Let's keep building healthy soils together!

05/14/2026

We love all the programs we get to do with the schools no matter what it is, and more importantly we love that they love it too!

We wanted to share just a few of the thank you letters we received from Buckeye Trail’s 3rd graders who recently attended our Ag School Days field trip.

Have no fear, we’re already planning for next year’s 3rd grade class! 💙

05/09/2026

Yesterday we closed out our 2026 Ag School Days field trip to the Eastern Agricultural Research Station in Caldwell! 🐑🍀

Every year we have the privilege of hosting 3rd graders from Buckeye Trail, Meadowbrook, Shenandoah and Caldwell Elementary over a two-day period where students rotate through educational and fun hands-on stations covering topics such as stream monitoring, popcorn production, embryo development, OSU master gardeners, fishing, nutritious foods from the farm, wildlife adaptations, sheep production, animal byproducts and cow/calf management.

We want to say a heartfelt thank you to our amazing volunteers and presenters who took time out of their schedules to participate in this wonderful event. We also want to say a special thank you to the Guernsey and Noble County Farm Bureau, Belmont SWCD, Noble SWCD, Monroe SWCD, OSU Extension Guernsey and Noble counties, OSU Extension Master Gardeners, NRCS, ODNR, Deputy Devin Ryan and K-9 Remy with the Guernsey County Sheriff’s Office, the FFA students from Caldwell and Shenandoah and the entire team from OSU’s Eastern Agricultural Research Station. You rock, every single one of you!

We would also like to thank our many generous sponsors for your donations! The students receive T-shirts (with the list of sponsors on the back) and goodie bags full of educational materials to commemorate their day at the farm 🥚🐓🐄

None of what we are able to would be possible without the hard work and help from all of those mentioned above and some we are surely forgetting! This is one of our favorite events we have the good fortune of hosting and we look forward to many more years of partnership in order to provide this experience for local students!

04/21/2026

Our office will be closed, Wednesday, April 22nd as our staff will be assisting with the Area 3 Envirothon

04/16/2026

TREE SALE PICKUP IS TOMORROW, FRIDAY APRIL 17th 8AM - 4:30PM in the garage behind our office at the fairgrounds. Thank you 🙂